New appliance unlocks value in data

Kelley Blue Book is testing a new appliance that analyzes click stream data created by users surfing its Web site. The company, which is a resource for prices, values, and expert and consumer reviews on new and used cars, will be able to analyze the information to see what topics visitors care most about, such as used and new car prices, safety recall and warranty data, and car buyer reviews.

The appliance Kelley Blue Book is testing is the first to be delivered by IBM since it acquired Netezza in November 2010. The IBM Netezza High Capacity Appliance is designed to address the huge amounts of data companies are accumulating. With the new tool, they can sift through petabytes of data including banking and mobile phone transactions, insurance claims, electronic medical records and sales information. Companies can analyze that information to find trends in, for example, consumer sentiment, according to a news release from IBM.

Karen Simmons, senior director of data warehousing at Kelley Blue Book, says, “We are testing the new appliance to unlock the value of archived data in search of new ways to grow our business. This appliance allows organizations like ours to take a fresh look at our historical information and use the insights we gain for competitive advantage.”

Battelle’s Pacific Northwest Division is also using Netezza technology as part of the Pacific Northwest Smart Grid Demonstration Project. In that project, 60,000 customers in 11 utilities across five states will share a digital signal for their smart meters, with the goal of making better decisions about energy use, IBM reports.